Public Transportation to Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER)

Getting to Berlin’s new Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg Willy Brandt (BER) is easiest and cheapest by Airport Express train from downtown Berlin Hauptbahnhof central main station. Regional trains, S and U Bahn trains, as well as buses, are further public transportation options when traveling to Germany’s third-largest airport.

Public transportation and especially trains provide the easiest, fastest, and cheapest way for getting to the new Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) in the German capital (due to open October 31, 2020). The Airport Express trains provide the fastest transportation for most travelers to downtown Berlin Hauptbahnhof and many parts of the city. Regional and S-Bahn trains are also useful for travelers heading to many parts of Berlin city. Direct trains connect Berlin Brandenburg Airport with Potsdam, Dresden, Rostock, and other cities in eastern Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic. Taxis and airport transfer shuttle services are of course also be available – Suntransfers quotes around €50 for a single trip from the airport to Berlin Mitte or Kurfürstendamm area. The abbreviation BBI is often seen but is incorrect – BER is the official IATA code for Berlin’s new airport.

The basic public transportation fare to Berlin Brandenburg Airport from downtown Berlin is a standard ABC ticket costing €3.60. the Berlin Welcome Card is a good savings option that includes transportation and discounts at sights in Berlin. Surcharges are payable on express buses and long-distance trains (e.g. ICE, IC, EC) but not on U, S, RB, or RE trains and Berlin public transportation buses.

Getting to Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER) op Public Transportation

Berlin Brandenburg International Willy Brandt Airport (BER) will replace Berlin Tegel (TXL) and Berlin Schönefeld (SXF) airports as the only airport serving the capital of Germany from October 31, 2020. The new airport will share some facilities with the old Schönefeld Airport (SXF) and is thus to the southeast of Berlin and far less conveniently located than Tegel Airport (TXL) that will close.

Getting to Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) is easy and cheap by train. It is expected that two-thirds of all passengers will use public transportation, and especially trains, to travel to and from the airport. Using the train to Berlin Brandenburg Airport will be a lot easier than was the case with Schönefeld.

Trains to New Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER)

Trains are the best and easiest option for most passengers traveling to Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER). The airport terminal train station, “Flughafen BER Terminal 1 — 2“, is in the basement of the airport’s main terminal with the distance between the train and check-in counters as short as 50 meters.

From the airport to Berlin Hauptbahnhof, trains are available around every ten minutes — the duration of the journey depends mostly on the number of stops en route. The Flughafen Express trains (FEX) are the fastest. Regional Express (RE7) and Regional Bahn (RB14) are only marginally slower, while S-Bahn trains (S9) stop at more stations, which may be more convenient than the Hauptbahnhof.

Further regional trains run to amongst others Potsdam, while long-distance trains provide fast access to Dresden, Rostock, Poland, and the Czech Republic.

The name of the train station in the basement of the airport terminal is Flughafen BER Terminal 1 — 2, while station “Flughafen BER Terminal 5” is the new name of the old Schönefeld Airport terminal station — most travelers will use neither this station nor this terminal. Use the S-Bahn or the very frequent bus X7 to travel between these two stations.

S-Bahn Trains to Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg (BER)

Two S-Bahn trains stop at Berlin Brandenburg International Airport to provide easy access from many parts of Berlin not directly served by the Airport Express trains. The S-Bahn trains stop at both Flughafen BER Terminal 1 — 2 station and Flughafen BER Terminal 5 — if using the wrong stop, simply take the next train, the fare is covered.

S9 – S-Bahn trains run from Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BBI / BER) via Ostkreuz to Spandau. S9 trains run right through central Berlin on the same route as the Airport Express RB14 and RE7 lines but stop at more stations, which depending on the final destination could cut out a transfer. Traveling time to the Hauptbahnhof on S9 is 50 minutes. S9 trains run three times per hour.

S45 – S-Bahn trains run from Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BBI / BER) to Südkreuz, which has good connections to further S-Bahn trains, especially to destinations in the south of the city.

U-Bahn Trains to Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg (BER)

Plans to extend Berlin’s U-Bahn train network all the way to Berlin Brandenburg International Airport floundered on cost grounds. As a result, the closest U-Bahn (metro) station to the new airport will be Rudow on line U7. As with Schönefeld, a simple bus connection is available between the new airport and Rudow U-Bahn train station.

Buses X7 and X71 provide the 12-minute ride between Berlin Brandenburg Airport and Rudow to bring passengers to the Berlin metro system. During most of the day, buses and U-Bahn trains operate every five minutes. U7 provides a useful service to many travelers but most visitors to central Berlin will find the S-Bahn and Airport Express trains more useful.

High-speed ICE, IC, and EC trains of German Railways will also stop at Berlin Brandenburg International Airport. This will be great for passengers arriving from other parts of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic.

However, for passengers traveling to central Berlin, these trains will offer little advantage over the Airport Express and probably cost more too.

Buses to Berlin Brandenburg Airport

A few bus services to Berlin Brandenburg Airport are worth noting as they provide useful services to parts of Berlin where using the trains will require detours and transfers.

Routes that are likely to be of use to some foreign travelers include:

Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BBI / BER) has been in planning for many years. The airport is right on the border between the two German states Berlin and Brandenburg, which explains the inclusion of the latter in the airport name. The IATA code for Berlin Brandenburg International Airport is BER, previously used as code for the whole Berlin area. Willy Brandt was added by the state governments to honor the former West Berlin mayor and West German chancellor – like most other German airports that honor persons, the full name will probably very rarely be used in practice.

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